Awdough Wawes cwosewy shares its powiticaw and sociaw history wif de rest of Great Britain, and a majority of de popuwation in most areas speaks Engwish as a first wanguage, de country has retained a distinct cuwturaw identity and is officiawwy biwinguaw. Over 560,000 Wewsh wanguage speakers wive in Wawes, and de wanguage is spoken by a majority of de popuwation in parts of de norf and west. From de wate 19f century onwards, Wawes acqwired its popuwar image as de "wand of song", in part due to de eisteddfod tradition, uh-hah-hah-hah. At many internationaw sporting events, such as de FIFA Worwd Cup, Rugby Worwd Cup and de Commonweawf Games, Wawes has its own nationaw teams, dough at de Owympic Games, Wewsh adwetes compete as part of a Great Britain team. Rugby union is seen as a symbow of Wewsh identity and an expression of nationaw consciousness.

Historicawwy in Britain, de words were not restricted to modern Wawes or to de Wewsh but were used to refer to anyding dat de Angwo-Saxons associated wif de Britons, incwuding oder non-Germanic territories in Britain (e.g. Cornwaww) and pwaces in Angwo-Saxon territory associated wif Britons (e.g. Wawworf in County Durham and Wawton in West Yorkshire),[14] as weww as items associated wif non-Germanic Europeans, such as de wawnut.

The modern Wewsh name for demsewves is Cymry, and Cymru is de Wewsh name for Wawes. These words (bof of which are pronounced [ˈkəm.rɨ]) are descended from de Brydonic word combrogi, meaning "fewwow-countrymen".[15] The use of de word Cymry as a sewf-designation derives from de wocation in de post-Roman Era (after de arrivaw of de Angwo-Saxons) of de Wewsh (Brydonic-speaking) peopwe in modern Wawes as weww as in nordern Engwand and soudern Scotwand (Yr Hen Ogwedd) (Engwish: The Owd Norf). It emphasised dat de Wewsh in modern Wawes and in de Hen Ogwedd were one peopwe, different from oder peopwes.[16] In particuwar, de term was not appwied to de Cornish or de Breton peopwes, who are of simiwar heritage, cuwture, and wanguage to de Wewsh. The word came into use as a sewf-description probabwy before de 7f century.[17]
It is attested in a praise poem to Cadwawwon ap Cadfan (Mowiant Cadwawwon, by Afan Ferddig) c. 633.[18] In Wewsh witerature, de word Cymry was used droughout de Middwe Ages to describe de Wewsh, dough de owder, more generic term Brydoniaid continued to be used to describe any of de Britonnic peopwes (incwuding de Wewsh) and was de more common witerary term untiw c. 1200. Thereafter Cymry prevaiwed as a reference to de Wewsh. Untiw c. 1560 de word was spewt Kymry or Cymry, regardwess of wheder it referred to de peopwe or deir homewand.[15]

History

Prehistoric origins

Wawes has been inhabited by modern humans for at weast 29,000 years.[19] Continuous human habitation dates from de end of de wast ice age, between 12,000 and 10,000 years before present (BP), when Mesowidichunter-gaderers from centraw Europe began to migrate to Great Britain, uh-hah-hah-hah. At dat time sea wevews were much wower dan today, and de shawwower parts of what is now de Norf Sea were dry wand. The east coast of present-day Engwand and de coasts of present-day Denmark, Germany and de Nederwands were connected by de former wandmass known as Doggerwand, forming de British Peninsuwa on de European mainwand. Wawes was free of gwaciers by about 10,250 BP, de warmer cwimate awwowing de area to become heaviwy wooded. The post-gwaciaw rise in sea wevew separated Wawes and Irewand, forming de Irish Sea. Doggerwand was submerged by de Norf Sea and, by 8,000 BP, de British Peninsuwa had become an iswand.[20][21] By de beginning of de Neowidic (c. 6,000 BP) sea wevews in de Bristow Channew were stiww about 33 feet (10 metres) wower dan today.[22][23][24]John Davies has deorised dat de story of Cantre'r Gwaewod's drowning and tawes in de Mabinogion, of de waters between Wawes and Irewand being narrower and shawwower, may be distant fowk memories of dis time.[25]

Roman era

The Roman conqwest of Wawes began in AD 48 and took 30 years to compwete. Roman ruwe wasted over 300 years. The campaigns of conqwest are de most widewy known feature of Wawes during de Roman era, because of de spirited, but uwtimatewy unsuccessfuw, defence of deir homewands by two native tribes: de Siwures and de Ordovices. Roman ruwe in Wawes was a miwitary occupation, save for de soudern coastaw region of souf Wawes, east of de Gower Peninsuwa, where dere is a wegacy of Romanisation, uh-hah-hah-hah.[36] The onwy town in Wawes founded by de Romans, Caerwent, is in souf east Wawes. Bof Caerwent and Carmarden, awso in soudern Wawes, became Roman civitates.[37] Wawes had a rich mineraw weawf. The Romans used deir engineeringtechnowogy to extract warge amounts of gowd, copper and wead, as weww as modest amounts of some oder metaws such as zinc and siwver.[38] Roman economic devewopment was concentrated in souf-eastern Britain, and no significant industries wocated in Wawes.[38] This was wargewy a matter of circumstance, as Wawes had none of de necessary materiaws in suitabwe combination, and de forested, mountainous countryside was not amenabwe to industriawisation, uh-hah-hah-hah. Awdough Latin became de officiaw wanguage of Wawes, de peopwe tended to continue to speak in Brydonic. Whiwe Romanisation was far from compwete, de upper cwasses of Wawes began to consider demsewves Roman, particuwarwy after de ruwing of 212 dat granted Roman citizenship to aww free men droughout de Empire.[39] Furder Roman infwuence came drough de spread of Christianity, which gained many fowwowers when Christians were awwowed to worship freewy; state persecution ceased in de 4f century, as a resuwt of Constantine I issuing an edict of toweration in 313.[39]

Earwy historians, incwuding de 6f-century cweric Giwdas, have noted 383 as a significant point in Wewsh history,[40] as it is stated in witerature as de foundation point of severaw medievaw royaw dynasties. In dat year de Roman generaw Magnus Maximus, or Macsen Wwedig, stripped aww of western and nordern Britain of troops and senior administrators, to waunch a successfuw bid for imperiaw power; continuing to ruwe Britain from Gauw as emperor.[41][42] Giwdas, writing in about 540, says dat Maximus departed Britain, taking wif him aww of its Roman troops, armed bands, governors and de fwower of its youf, never to return, uh-hah-hah-hah. Having weft wif de troops and Roman administrators, and pwanning to continue as de ruwer of Britain in de future, his practicaw course was to transfer wocaw audority to wocaw ruwers. The earwiest Wewsh geneawogies give Maximus de rowe of founding fader for severaw royaw dynasties, incwuding dose of Powys and Gwent.[43][44] It was dis transfer of power dat has given rise to de bewief dat he was de fader of de Wewsh Nation, uh-hah-hah-hah.[40] He is given as de ancestor of a Wewsh king on de Piwwar of Ewiseg, erected nearwy 500 years after he weft Britain, and he figures in wists of de Fifteen Tribes of Wawes.[45]

Post-Roman era

Britain in AD 500: The areas shaded pink on de map were inhabited by de Britons, here wabewwed Wewsh. The pawe bwue areas in de east were controwwed by Germanic tribes, whiwst de pawe green areas to de norf were inhabited by de Gaews and Picts.

The 400-year period fowwowing de cowwapse of Roman ruwe is de most difficuwt to interpret in de history of Wawes.[39] After de Roman departure from Britain in AD 410, much of de wowwands of Britain to de east and souf-east was overrun by various Germanic peopwes. Before extensive studies of de distribution of R1b Y-DNA subcwades, some previouswy maintained dat native Britons were dispwaced by de invaders.[46] This idea has been discarded in de face of evidence dat much of de popuwation has, at de watest, Hawwstatt era origins, but probabwy wate Neowidic, or at earwiest Mesowidic origins wif wittwe contribution from Angwo-Saxon source areas.[47]
However, by AD 500, de wand dat wouwd become Wawes had divided into a number of kingdoms free from Angwo-Saxon ruwe.[39] The kingdoms of Gwynedd, Powys, Dyfed and Seisywwwg, Morgannwg and Gwent emerged as independent Wewsh successor states.[39] Archaeowogicaw evidence, in de Low Countries and what was to become Engwand, shows earwy Angwo-Saxon migration to Great Britain reversed between 500 and 550, which concurs wif Frankish chronicwes.[48] John Davies notes dis as consistent wif de British victory at Badon Hiww, attributed to Ardur by Nennius.[48] This tenacious survivaw by de Romano-Britons and deir descendants in de western kingdoms was to become de foundation of what we now know as Wawes. Wif de woss of de wowwands, Engwand's kingdoms of Mercia and Nordumbria, and water Wessex, wrestwed wif Powys, Gwent and Gwynedd to define de frontier between de two peopwes.

Having wost much of what is now de West Midwands to Mercia in de 6f and earwy 7f centuries, a resurgent wate-7f-century Powys checked Mercian advances. Aedewbawd of Mercia, wooking to defend recentwy acqwired wands, had buiwt Wat's Dyke. According to John Davies, dis endeavour may have been wif de agreement of Powys king Ewisedd ap Gwywog, as dis boundary, extending norf from de vawwey of de River Severn to de Dee estuary, gave Oswestry to Powys.[49] Anoder deory, after carbon dating pwaced de dyke's existence 300 years earwier, is dat it may have been buiwt by de post-Roman ruwers of Wroxeter.[50] King Offa of Mercia seems to have continued dis consuwtative initiative when he created a warger eardwork, now known as Offa's Dyke (Cwawdd Offa). Davies wrote of Cyriw Fox's study of Offa's Dyke: "In de pwanning of it, dere was a degree of consuwtation wif de kings of Powys and Gwent. On de Long Mountain near Trewystan, de dyke veers to de east, weaving de fertiwe swopes in de hands of de Wewsh; near Rhiwabon, it was designed to ensure dat Cadeww ap Brochwew retained possession of de Fortress of Penygadden, uh-hah-hah-hah." And, for Gwent, Offa had de dyke buiwt "on de eastern crest of de gorge, cwearwy wif de intention of recognizing dat de River Wye and its traffic bewonged to de kingdom of Gwent."[49] However, Fox's interpretations of bof de wengf and purpose of de Dyke have been qwestioned by more recent research.[51] Offa's Dyke wargewy remained de frontier between de Wewsh and Engwish, dough de Wewsh wouwd recover by de 12f century de area between de Dee (Afon Dyfrdwy) and de Conwy, known den as Y Berfeddwwad. By de 8f century, de eastern borders wif de Angwo-Saxons had broadwy been set.

In 853, de Vikings raided Angwesey, but in 856, Rhodri Mawr defeated and kiwwed deir weader, Gorm.[52] The Britons of Wawes water made deir peace wif de Vikings and Anarawd ap Rhodri awwied wif de Norsemen occupying Nordumbria to conqwer de norf.[53] This awwiance water broke down and Anarawd came to an agreement wif Awfred, king of Wessex, wif whom he fought against de west Wewsh. According to Annawes Cambriae, in 894, "Anarawd came wif de Angwes and waid waste Ceredigion and Ystrad Tywi."[54]

Medievaw Wawes

The soudern and eastern parts of Great Britain wost to Engwish settwement became known in Wewsh as Lwoegyr (Modern Wewsh Lwoegr), which may have referred to de kingdom of Mercia originawwy and which came to refer to Engwand as a whowe.[nb 1] The Germanic tribes who now dominated dese wands were invariabwy cawwed Saeson, meaning "Saxons". The Angwo-Saxons cawwed de Romano-British 'Wawha', meaning 'Romanised foreigner' or 'stranger'.[55] The Wewsh continued to caww demsewves Brydoniaid (Brydons or Britons) weww into de Middwe Ages, dough de first written evidence of de use of Cymru and y Cymry is found in a praise poem to Cadwawwon ap Cadfan (Mowiant Cadwawwon, by Afan Ferddig) c. 633.[10] In Armes Prydain, bewieved to be written around 930–942, de words Cymry and Cymro are used as often as 15 times.[56] However, from de Angwo-Saxon settwement onwards, de peopwe graduawwy begin to adopt de name Cymry over Brydoniad.[57]

From 800 onwards, a series of dynastic marriages wed to Rhodri Mawr's (r. 844–77) inheritance of Gwynedd and Powys. His sons, in turn, wouwd found dree principaw dynasties (Aberffraw for Gwynedd, Dinefwr for Deheubarf and Madrafaw for Powys). Rhodri's grandson Hywew Dda (r. 900–50) founded Deheubarf out of his maternaw and paternaw inheritances of Dyfed and Seisywwwg in 930, ousted de Aberffraw dynasty from Gwynedd and Powys and den codified Wewsh waw in de 940s.[58]Maredudd ab Owain (r. 986–99) of Deheubarf (Hywew's grandson) wouwd, (again) temporariwy oust de Aberffraw wine from controw of Gwynedd and Powys.

Maredudd's great-grandson (drough his daughter Princess Angharad) Gruffydd ap Lwywewyn (r. 1039–63) wouwd conqwer his cousins' reawms from his base in Powys, and even extend his audority into Engwand. Historian John Davies states dat Gruffydd was "de onwy Wewsh king ever to ruwe over de entire territory of Wawes... Thus, from about 1057 untiw his deaf in 1063, de whowe of Wawes recognised de kingship of Gruffydd ap Lwywewyn, uh-hah-hah-hah. For about seven brief years, Wawes was one, under one ruwer, a feat wif neider precedent nor successor."[2]Owain Gwynedd (1100–70) of de Aberffraw wine was de first Wewsh ruwer to use de titwe princeps Wawwensium (prince of de Wewsh), a titwe of substance given his victory on de Berwyn Mountains, according to John Davies.[59]

Widin four years of de Battwe of Hastings, Engwand had been compwetewy subjugated by de Normans.[2]Wiwwiam I of Engwand estabwished a series of wordships, awwocated to his most powerfuw warriors awong de Wewsh border, de boundaries fixed onwy to de east (where dey met oder feudaw properties inside Engwand).[60] Starting in de 1070s, dese words began conqwering wand in soudern and eastern Wawes, west of de River Wye. The frontier region, and any Engwish-hewd wordships in Wawes, became known as Marchia Wawwie, de Wewsh Marches, in which de Marcher Lords were subject to neider Engwish nor Wewsh waw.[61][contradictory] The area of de March varied as de fortunes of de Marcher Lords and de Wewsh princes ebbed and fwowed.[62]

The Engwish interpretation of de treason of Lwywewyn was dat his fiefdom had escheated to de king. The Statute of Rhuddwan in 1284 provided de constitutionaw basis for post-conqwest government of de Principawity of Norf Wawes from 1284 untiw 1535/6.[67] It defined aww of Wawes as "annexed and united" to de Engwish Crown, stiww separate from Engwand but under de same monarch. The king ruwed directwy in two areas: de Statute divided de norf and dewegated administrative duties to de Justice of Chester and Justiciar of Norf Wawes, and furder souf in western Wawes de King's audority was dewegated to de Justiciar of Souf Wawes. The existing royaw wordships of Montgomery and Buiwf remained unchanged,[68] and de remainder of Wawes was stiww controwwed by de marcher words.

After de faiwed revowt in 1294–95 of Madog ap Lwywewyn – who stywed himsewf Prince of Wawes in de Penmachno Document – and de rising of Lwywewyn Bren (1316), de next major uprising was dat wed by Owain Gwyndŵr, against Henry IV of Engwand. In 1404, Owain was reputedwy crowned Prince of Wawes in de presence of emissaries from France, Spain and Scotwand.[72] Gwyndŵr went on to howd parwiamentary assembwies at severaw Wewsh towns, incwuding Machynwwef. But de rebewwion faiwed, and Owain went into hiding in 1412; peace was essentiawwy restored in Wawes by 1415.

The wast remnants of Cewtic-tradition Wewsh waw were abowished and repwaced by Engwish waw by de Laws in Wawes Acts 1535 and 1542.[73] Aww of Wawes became unified wif de kingdom of Engwand, in de wegaw jurisdiction of Engwand and Wawes; de "Principawity of Wawes" began to refer to de whowe country, dough it remained a "principawity" onwy in a ceremoniaw sense.[67][74] The wordships of de Marches were abowished, and Wawes began ewecting members of de Westminster parwiament.

Industriaw Wawes

Prior to de British Industriaw Revowution, which saw a rapid economic expansion between 1750 and 1850, dere were signs of smaww-scawe industries scattered droughout Wawes.[75] These ranged from industries connected to agricuwture, such as miwwing and de manufacture of woowwen textiwes, drough to mining and qwarrying.[75] Untiw de Industriaw Revowution, Wawes had awways been rewiant on its agricuwturaw output for its weawf and empwoyment and de earwiest industriaw businesses were smaww scawe and wocawised in manner.[75] The emerging industriaw period commenced around de devewopment of copper smewting in de Swansea area. Wif access to wocaw coaw deposits and a harbour dat couwd take advantage of Cornwaww's copper mines and de copper deposits being extracted from de wargest copper mine in de worwd at Parys Mountain on Angwesey, Swansea devewoped into de worwd's major centre for non-ferrous metaw smewting in de 19f century.[75] The second metaw industry to expand in Wawes was iron smewting, and iron manufacturing became prevawent in bof de norf and de souf of de country.[76] In de norf of Wawes, John Wiwkinson's Ironworks at Bersham was a significant industry, whiwe in de souf, a second worwd centre of metawwurgy was founded in Merdyr Tydfiw, where de four ironworks of Dowwais, Cyfardfa, Pwymouf and Penydarren became de most significant hub of iron manufacture in Wawes.[76] In de 1820s, souf Wawes awone accounted for 40% of aww pig iron manufactured in Britain, uh-hah-hah-hah.[76]

In de wate 18f century, swate qwarrying began to expand rapidwy, most notabwy in norf Wawes. The Penrhyn Quarry, opened in 1770 by Richard Pennant, was empwoying 15,000 men by de wate 19f century,[77] and awong wif Dinorwic Quarry, it dominated de Wewsh swate trade. Awdough swate qwarrying has been described as 'de most Wewsh of Wewsh industries',[78] it is coaw mining which has become de singwe industry synonymous wif Wawes and its peopwe. Initiawwy, coaw seams were expwoited to provide energy for wocaw metaw industries but, wif de opening of canaw systems and water de raiwways, Wewsh coaw mining saw a boom in its demand. As de Souf Wawes coawfiewd was expwoited, Cardiff, Swansea, Penarf and Barry grew as worwd exporters of coaw. By its height in 1913, Wawes was producing awmost 61 miwwion tons of coaw. As weww as in souf Wawes, dere was awso a significant coawfiewd in de norf-east of de country, particuwarwy around Wrexham.[79] As Wawes was rewiant on de production of capitaw goods rader dan consumer goods, it possessed few of de skiwwed craftspeopwe and artisans found in de workshops of Birmingham or Sheffiewd in Engwand and had few factories producing finished goods – a key feature of most regions associated wif de Industriaw Revowution, uh-hah-hah-hah.[76] However, dere is increasing support dat de industriaw revowution was rewiant on harnessing de energy and materiaws provided by Wawes and, in dat sense, Wawes was of centraw importance.[76]

Modern Wawes

Earwy 20f century

Historian Kennef Morgan described Wawes on de eve of de First Worwd War as a "rewativewy pwacid, sewf-confident and successfuw nation". Output from de coawfiewds continued to increase, wif de Rhondda Vawwey recording a peak of 9.6 miwwion tons of coaw extracted in 1913.[80] The outbreak of de First Worwd War (1914–1918) saw Wawes, as part of de United Kingdom, enter hostiwities wif Germany. A totaw of 272,924 Wewshmen served in de war, representing 21.5% of de mawe popuwation, uh-hah-hah-hah.[81] Of dese, roughwy 35,000 were kiwwed.[81] The two most notabwe battwes of de War to incwude Wewsh forces were dose at Mametz Wood on de Somme and de Battwe of Passchendaewe.[82]

The first qwarter of de 20f century awso saw a shift in de powiticaw wandscape of Wawes. Since 1865, de Liberaw Party had hewd a parwiamentary majority in Wawes and, fowwowing de generaw ewection of 1906, onwy one non-Liberaw Member of Parwiament, Keir Hardie of Merdyr Tydfiw, represented a Wewsh constituency at Westminster.[83] Yet by 1906, industriaw dissension and powiticaw miwitancy had begun to undermine Liberaw consensus in de soudern coawfiewds.[83] In 1916, David Lwoyd George became de first Wewshman to become Prime Minister of Britain when he was made head of de 1916 coawition government.[84] In December 1918, Lwoyd George was re-ewected at de head of a Conservative-dominated coawition government, and his poor handwing of de 1919 coaw miners' strike was a key factor in destroying support for de Liberaw party in souf Wawes.[85] The industriaw workers of Wawes began shifting towards a new powiticaw organisation, estabwished by Hardie and oders to ensure an ewected representation for de working cwass, which is now cawwed de Labour Party.[86] When in 1908 de Miners' Federation of Great Britain became affiwiated to de Labour Party, de four Labour candidates sponsored by miners were aww ewected as MPs.[86] By 1922, hawf de Wewsh seats at Westminster were hewd by Labour powiticians—de start of a Labour hegemony dat dominated Wawes into de 21st century.[86]

Mid 20f century

After economic growf in de first two decades of de 20f century, Wawes' stapwe industries endured a prowonged swump from de earwy 1920s to de wate 1930s, weading to widespread unempwoyment and poverty in de souf Wawes vawweys.[87] For de first time in centuries, de popuwation of Wawes went into decwine; de scourge of unempwoyment rewented onwy wif de production demands of de Second Worwd War.[88] The war saw Wewsh servicemen and women fight in aww de major deatres, wif some 15,000 of dem kiwwed.[89] Bombing raids brought major woss of wife as de German Air Force targeted de docks at Swansea, Cardiff and Pembroke.[89] After 1943, 10% of Wewsh conscripts aged 18 were sent to work in de coaw mines, where dere were wabour shortages; dey became known as Bevin Boys.[89]Pacifist numbers during bof Worwd Wars were fairwy wow, especiawwy in de Second Worwd War, which was seen as a fight against fascism.[89] Of de powiticaw parties active in Wawes, onwy Pwaid Cymru took a neutraw stance, on de grounds dat it was an "imperiawist war".[89]

Late 20f century

The 20f century saw a revivaw in Wewsh nationaw feewing. Pwaid Cymru was formed in 1925, seeking greater autonomy or independence from de rest of de UK.[90] The term "Engwand and Wawes" became common for describing de area to which Engwish waw appwied, and in 1955 Cardiff was procwaimed as Wawes' capitaw. Cymdeidas yr Iaif Gymraeg (The Wewsh Language Society) was formed in 1962, in response to wong-hewd fears dat de wanguage might soon die out.[91] Nationawist sentiment grew fowwowing de fwooding of de Tryweryn vawwey in 1965 to create a reservoir to suppwy water to de Engwish city of Liverpoow.[92] Awdough 35 of de 36 Wewsh MPs voted against de biww (one abstained), Parwiament passed de biww and de viwwage of Capew Cewyn was submerged, highwighting Wawes' powerwessness in her own affairs in de face of de numericaw superiority of Engwish MPs in Parwiament.[93] Bof de Free Wawes Army and Mudiad Amddiffyn Cymru (Wewsh Defence Movement, abbreviated as MAC) were formed as a direct resuwt of de Tryweryn destruction, conducting campaigns from 1963.[94] In de years weading up to de investiture of Charwes as Prince of Wawes in 1969, dese groups were responsibwe for a number of bomb bwasts—destroying water pipes, tax and oder offices and part of de dam at de new Cwywedog reservoir project in Montgomeryshire, being buiwt to suppwy water to de Engwish Midwands.[95][96] At a by-ewection in 1966, Gwynfor Evans won de parwiamentary seat of Carmarden, Pwaid Cymru's first Parwiamentary seat.[97] The next year, de Wawes and Berwick Act 1746 was repeawed and a wegaw definition of Wawes and of de boundary wif Engwand was stated.[98]

By de end of de 1960s, de regionaw powicy of bringing businesses into disadvantaged areas of Wawes drough financiaw incentives had proven very successfuw in diversifying de industriaw economy.[99] This powicy, begun in 1934, was enhanced by de construction of industriaw estates and improvements in transport communications,[99] most notabwy de M4 motorway winking souf Wawes directwy to London, uh-hah-hah-hah. It was bewieved dat de foundations for stabwe economic growf had been firmwy estabwished in Wawes during dis period, but dis was shown to be wiwdwy optimistic after de recession of de earwy 1980s saw de cowwapse of much of de manufacturing base dat had been buiwt over de preceding forty years.[100]

Devowution

In de first referendum, in 1979, de Wewsh ewectorate voted against de creation of a Wewsh assembwy wif an 80% majority for de "no" vote.[101] In 1997, a second referendum on de same issue secured a "yes" by a very narrow majority (50.3%).[101] The Nationaw Assembwy for Wawes (Cynuwwiad Cenedwaedow Cymru) was set up in 1999 (under de Government of Wawes Act 1998) and has de power to determine how Wawes' centraw government budget is spent and administered, awdough de UK parwiament reserves de right to set wimits on de powers of de Wewsh Assembwy.

The governments of de United Kingdom and of Wawes awmost invariabwy define Wawes as a country.[102][103] The Wewsh Government says: "Wawes is not a Principawity. Awdough we are joined wif Engwand by wand, and we are part of Great Britain, Wawes is a country in its own right."[104] The titwe Prince of Wawes is stiww conferred on de heir apparent to de British drone, currentwy Prince Charwes, but he has no constitutionaw rowe in modern Wawes.[105] According to de Wewsh Government: "Our Prince of Wawes at de moment is Prince Charwes, who is de present heir to de drone. But he does not have a rowe in de governance of Wawes, even dough his titwe might suggest dat he does."[104]

Composition of de Assembwy

Labour remained de wargest Assembwy party fowwowing de 2007 ewection, winning 26 of de 60 seats.[113] Having insufficient support to form a government, de Labour Party entered into de 'One Wawes' agreement wif Pwaid Cymru, forming a coawition, wif de Labour weader as First Minister.[114]Carwyn Jones has been First Minister and weader of Wewsh Labour since Rhodri Morgan retired from office in December 2009, after nine years and ten monds as First Minister.[115]Ieuan Wyn Jones, Deputy First Minister in de coawition government, was weader of Pwaid Cymru, de second-wargest party in de Assembwy wif 14 of de 60 seats. Under de 'One Wawes' agreement, a referendum on giving de Wewsh assembwy fuww waw-making powers was promised "as soon as practicabwe, at or before de end of de assembwy term (in 2011)" and bof parties have agreed "in good faif to campaign for a successfuw outcome to such a referendum".[116]

After de May 2016 ewection, Labour continues to form de wargest group in de Assembwy, wif 29 AMs.[117]

Fowwowing de ewection, de vote for First Minister initiawwy resuwted in a tie between Jones (Labour) and Leanne Wood (Pwaid Cymru).[118] After discussions amongst de parties, a Labour government incwuding de Liberaw Democrat AM as Minister for Education was proposed wif wimited powicy-based support from Pwaid Cymru, and Jones was re-ewected as First Minister.[119]

Initiawwy, Pwaid Cymru formed de officiaw opposition, wif twewve AMs and de Conservative Party were de dird party wif eweven AMs.

In August 2016, one of de UKIP AMs weft his group and continues to sit as an Independent member,[120] and in October 2016, former Pwaid Cymru president and inauguraw Presiding Officer of de Nationaw Assembwy Dafydd Ewis-Thomas weft his party and awso continues to sit as an Independent member.[121] In Apriw 2017, a second UKIP AM weft de party and joined de Conservative Assembwy group widout joining de party.[122]

Areas of responsibiwity

The twenty areas of responsibiwity devowved to de Wewsh Government, known as "subjects", incwude agricuwture, economic devewopment, education, heawf, housing, wocaw government, sociaw services, tourism, transport and de Wewsh wanguage.[123][124] On its creation in 1999, de Nationaw Assembwy for Wawes had no primary wegiswative powers.[125] But since de Government of Wawes Act 2006 (GoWA 2006) came into effect in 2007, de Assembwy has power to pass primary wegiswation as Assembwy Measures on some specific matters widin de areas of devowved responsibiwity. Furder matters have been added subseqwentwy, eider directwy by de UK Parwiament or by de UK Parwiament approving a Legiswative Competence Order (LCO, a reqwest from de Nationaw Assembwy for additionaw powers). The GoWA 2006 awwows for de Assembwy to gain primary wawmaking powers on a more extensive range of matters widin de same devowved areas if approved in a referendum.[126]

A referendum on extending de wawmaking powers of de Nationaw Assembwy was accordingwy hewd on 3 March 2011. It asked: "Do you want de Assembwy now to be abwe to make waws on aww matters in de 20 subject areas it has powers for?" 63.49% of de voters voted 'yes', and 36.51% voted 'no'. Conseqwentwy, de Assembwy is now empowered to make waws, known as Acts of de Assembwy, on aww matters in de subject areas, widout needing de UK Parwiament's agreement.[127]

Locaw government

For de purposes of wocaw government, Wawes has been divided into 22 counciw areas since 1996. These "principaw areas"[131] are responsibwe for de provision of aww wocaw government services, incwuding education, sociaw work, environment and roads services.[132]

Much of Wawes' diverse wandscape is mountainous, particuwarwy in de norf and centraw regions. The mountains were shaped during de wast ice age, de Devensian gwaciation. The highest mountains in Wawes are in Snowdonia (Eryri), of which five are over 1,000 m (3,300 ft). The highest of dese is Snowdon (Yr Wyddfa), at 1,085 m (3,560 ft).[149][150] The 14 Wewsh mountains, or 15 if incwuding Garnedd Uchaf – often discounted because of its wow topographic prominence – over 3,000 feet (910 metres) high are known cowwectivewy as de Wewsh 3000s and are wocated in a smaww area in de norf-west.[151]

Wawes has dree nationaw parks: Snowdonia, Brecon Beacons and Pembrokeshire Coast. It has five Areas of Outstanding Naturaw Beauty; Angwesey, de Cwwydian Range and Dee Vawwey, de Gower Peninsuwa, de Lwŷn Peninsuwa, and de Wye Vawwey.[153] The Gower Peninsuwa was de first area in de United Kingdom to be designated as an Area of Outstanding Naturaw Beauty, in 1956. Forty two percent of de coastwine of souf and west Wawes is designated as Heritage Coast, wif 13 specific designated strips of coastwine maintained by Naturaw Resources Wawes (successor body to de Countryside Counciw for Wawes).[154] As from 2017, de coastwine of Wawes has 45 Bwue Fwag beaches and dree Bwue Fwag marinas.[155] Despite its heritage and award-winning beaches; de souf and west coasts of Wawes, awong wif de Irish and Cornish coasts, are freqwentwy bwasted by Atwantic westerwies/souf westerwies dat, over de years, have sunk and wrecked many vessews. On de night of 25 October 1859, over 110 ships were destroyed off de coast of Wawes when a hurricane bwew in from de Atwantic.[156] More dan 800 wives were wost across Britain because of de storm, but de greatest tragedy was de sinking of de Royaw Charter off de coast of Angwesey in which 459 peopwe died.[157] The number of shipwrecks around de coast of Wawes reached a peak in de 19f century wif over 100 vessews wost and an average woss of wife of about 78 saiwors per year.[158] Wartime action caused wosses near Howyhead, Miwford Haven and Swansea.[158] Because of offshore rocks and unwit iswands, Angwesey and Pembrokeshire are stiww notorious for shipwrecks, most notabwy de Sea Empress oiw spiww in 1996.[159]

The first border between Wawes and Engwand was zonaw, apart from around de River Wye, which was de first accepted boundary.[160] Offa's Dyke was supposed to form an earwy distinct wine but dis was dwarted by Gruffudd ap Lwewewwyn, who recwaimed swades of wand beyond de dyke.[160] The Act of Union of 1536 formed a winear border stretching from de mouf of de Dee to de mouf of de Wye.[160] Even after de Act of Union, many of de borders remained vague and moveabwe untiw de Wewsh Sunday Cwosing act of 1881, which forced wocaw businesses to decide which country dey feww widin to accept eider de Wewsh or Engwish waw.[160]

Geowogy

The earwiest geowogicaw period of de Paweozoic era, de Cambrian, takes its name from de Cambrian Mountains, where geowogists first identified Cambrian remnants.[163][164] In evowutionary studies de Cambrian is de period when most major groups of compwex animaws appeared (de Cambrian expwosion). The owder rocks underwying de Cambrian rocks in Wawes wacked fossiws which couwd be used to differentiate deir various groups and were referred to as Pre-cambrian.

In de mid-19f century, two prominent geowogists, Roderick Murchison and Adam Sedgwick (who first proposed de name of de Cambrian period), independentwy used deir studies of de geowogy of Wawes to estabwish certain principwes of stratigraphy and pawaeontowogy. The next two periods of de Paweozoic era, de Ordovician and Siwurian, were named after ancient Cewtic tribes from dis area based on Murchison's and Sedgwick's work.[165][166]

Wawes wies widin de norf temperate zone. It has a changeabwe, maritime cwimate and is one of de wettest countries in Europe.[167][168] Wewsh weader is often cwoudy, wet and windy, wif warm summers and miwd winters.[167][169] The wong summer days and short winter days resuwt from Wawes' norderwy watitudes (between 53° 43′ N and 51° 38′ N). Aberystwyf, at de midpoint of de country's west coast, has nearwy 17 hours of daywight at de summer sowstice. Daywight at midwinter dere fawws to just over seven and a hawf hours.[170]
The country's wide geographic variations cause wocawised differences in sunshine, rainfaww and temperature. Average annuaw coastaw temperatures reach 10.5 °C (51 °F) and in wow wying inwand areas, 1 °C (1.8 °F) wower. It becomes coower at higher awtitudes; annuaw temperatures decrease on average approximatewy 0.5 °C (0.9 °F) each 100 metres (330 feet) of awtitude. Conseqwentwy, de higher parts of Snowdonia experience average annuaw temperatures of 5 °C (41 °F).[167] Temperatures in Wawes remain higher dan wouwd oderwise be expected at its watitude because of de Norf Atwantic Drift, a branch of de Guwf Stream. The ocean current, bringing warmer water to norderwy watitudes, has a simiwar effect on most of norf-west Europe. As weww as its infwuence on Wawes' coastaw areas, air warmed by de Guwf Stream bwows furder inwand wif de prevaiwing winds.[171]

At wow ewevations, summers tend to be warm and sunny. Average maximum temperatures range between 19 and 22 °C (66 and 72 °F). Winters tend to be fairwy wet, but rainfaww is rarewy excessive and de temperature usuawwy stays above freezing. Spring and autumn feew qwite simiwar and de temperatures tend to stay above 14 °C (57 °F) – awso de average annuaw daytime temperature.[172]

The sunniest time of year tends to be between May and August. The souf-western coast is de sunniest part of Wawes, averaging over 1700 hours of sunshine annuawwy. Wawes' sunniest town is Tenby, Pembrokeshire. The duwwest time of year tends to be between November and January. The weast sunny areas are de mountains, some parts of which average wess dan 1200 hours of sunshine annuawwy.[167][168] The prevaiwing wind is souf-westerwy. Coastaw areas are de windiest, gawes occur most often during winter, on average between 15 and 30 days each year, depending on wocation, uh-hah-hah-hah. Inwand, gawes average fewer dan six days annuawwy.[167]

Rainfaww patterns show significant variation, uh-hah-hah-hah. The furder west, de higher de expected rainfaww; up to 40% more.[168] At wow ewevations, rain is unpredictabwe at any time of year, awdough de showers tend to be shorter in summer.[172] The upwands of Wawes have most rain, normawwy more dan 50 days of rain during de winter monds (December to February), fawwing to around 35 rainy days during de summer monds (June to August). Annuaw rainfaww in Snowdonia averages between 3,000 miwwimetres (120 in) (Bwaenau Ffestiniog) and 5,000 miwwimetres (200 in) (Snowdon's summit).[168] The wikewihood is dat it wiww faww as sweet or snow when de temperature fawws bewow 5 °C (41 °F) and snow tends to be wying on de ground dere for an average of 30 days a year. Snow fawws severaw times each winter in inwand areas but is rewativewy uncommon around de coast. Average annuaw rainfaww in dose areas can be wess dan 1,000 miwwimetres (39 in).[167][168]

The warger Wewsh mammaws died out during de Norman period, incwuding de brown bear, wowf and de wiwdcat.[181] Today, mammaws of note incwude shrews, vowes, badgers, otters, hedgehogs and fifteen species of bat.[181] Two species of smaww rodent, de yewwow-necked mouse and de dormouse, are of speciaw Wewsh note being found at de historicawwy undisturbed border area.[181] Oder animaws of note incwude, otter, stoat and weasew. The pine marten which has had de occasionaw sighting, has not been officiawwy recorded since de 1950s. The powecat was nearwy driven to extinction in Britain, but hung on in Wawes and is now rapidwy spreading. Feraw goats can be found in Snowdonia.[182]

Economy

Over de wast 250 years, Wawes has been transformed first from a predominantwy agricuwturaw country to an industriaw, and now a post-industriaw economy.[185][186][187] Since de Second Worwd War, de service sector has come to account for de majority of jobs, a feature typifying most advanced economies.[188] Totaw headwine Gross Vawue Added (GVA) in Wawes in 2016 was £59.6 biwwion, or £19,140 per head of popuwation; 72.7 per cent of de average for de UK totaw, de wowest GVA per head in de UK.[189] In de dree monds to December 2017, de empwoyment rate for working-age aduwts in Wawes was 72.7 per cent, compared to 75.2 per cent across de UK as a whowe.[189]

From de middwe of de 19f century untiw de post-war era, de mining and export of coaw was a dominant industry. At its peak of production in 1913, nearwy 233,000 men and women were empwoyed in de souf Wawes coawfiewd, mining 56 miwwion tons of coaw.[190] Cardiff was once de wargest coaw-exporting port in de worwd and, for a few years before de First Worwd War, handwed a greater tonnage of cargo dan eider London or Liverpoow.[191][192] In de 1920s, over 40% of de mawe Wewsh popuwation worked in heavy industry.[193] According to Professor Phiw Wiwwiams, de Great Depression "devastated Wawes", norf and souf, because of its "overwhewming dependence on coaw and steew".[193] From de mid-1970s, de Wewsh economy faced massive restructuring wif warge numbers of jobs in traditionaw heavy industry disappearing and being repwaced eventuawwy by new ones in wight industry and in services. In de wate 1970s and earwy 1980s, Wawes was successfuw in attracting an above average share of foreign direct investment in de UK.[194] However, much of de new industry was essentiawwy of a "branch factory" ("screwdriver factory") type where a manufacturing pwant or caww centre is wocated in Wawes but de most highwy paid jobs in de company are retained ewsewhere.[195][196]
Poor-qwawity soiw in much of Wawes is unsuitabwe for crop-growing and wivestock farming has traditionawwy been de focus of agricuwture. The Wewsh wandscape (protected by dree nationaw parks) and 45 Bwue Fwag beaches, as weww as de uniqwe cuwture of Wawes, attract warge numbers of tourists, who pway an especiawwy vitaw rowe in de economy of ruraw areas.[197][198] Wawes has struggwed to devewop or attract high vawue-added empwoyment in sectors such as finance and research and devewopment, attributabwe in part to a comparative wack of 'economic mass' (i.e. popuwation) – Wawes wacks a warge metropowitan centre.[196] The wack of high vawue-added empwoyment is refwected in wower economic output per head rewative to oder regions of de UK – in 2002 it stood at 90% of de EU25 average and around 80% of de UK average.[196] In June 2008, Wawes made history by becoming de first nation in de worwd to be awarded Fairtrade Status.[199]

The pound sterwing is de currency used in Wawes. Numerous Wewsh banks issued deir own banknotes in de 19f century. The wast bank to do so cwosed in 1908; since den, awdough banks in Scotwand and Nordern Irewand continue to have de right to issue banknotes in deir own countries, de Bank of Engwand has a monopowy on de issue of banknotes in Wawes.[200][201][202][203] The Commerciaw Bank of Wawes, estabwished in Cardiff by Sir Juwian Hodge in 1971, was taken over by de Bank of Scotwand in 1988 and absorbed into its parent company in 2002.[204] The Royaw Mint, who issue de coinage circuwated drough de whowe of de UK, have been based at a singwe site in Lwantrisant since 1980.[205] Since decimawisation, in 1971, at weast one of de coins in UK circuwation has depicted a Wewsh design, e.g. de 1995 and 2000 one Pound coin (above). However, Wawes has not been represented on any coin minted from 2008.[206]

Cardiff Airport is de internationaw airport of Wawes. Providing winks to European, African and Norf American destinations, it is about 12 miwes (19 km) soudwest of Cardiff city centre, in de Vawe of Gwamorgan, uh-hah-hah-hah. Intra-Wawes fwights run between Angwesey (Vawwey) and Cardiff, operated since 2017 by Eastern Airways. Oder internaw fwights operate to nordern Engwand, Scotwand and Nordern Irewand.

A distinct education system has devewoped in Wawes.[213] Formaw education before de 18f century was de preserve of de ewite. The first grammar schoows were estabwished in Wewsh towns such as Rudin, Brecon and Cowbridge.[213] One of de first successfuw schoowing systems was started by Griffif Jones, who introduced de circuwating schoows in de 1730s; bewieved to have taught hawf de country's popuwation to read.[214] In de 19f century, wif increasing state invowvement in education, Wawes was forced to adopt an education system dat was Engwish in edos even dough de country was predominantwy Non-conformist, Wewsh-speaking and demographicawwy uneven because of de economic expansion in de souf.[214] In some schoows, to ensure Wewsh chiwdren spoke Engwish at schoow, de Wewsh Not was used; a powicy seen as a hated symbow of Engwish oppression, uh-hah-hah-hah.[215] The "not", a piece of wood hung round de neck by string, was given to any chiwd overheard speaking Wewsh, who wouwd pass it to a different chiwd if overheard speaking Wewsh. At de end of de day, de wearer of de "not" wouwd be beaten, uh-hah-hah-hah.[216][217] The extent of its practice, however, is difficuwt to determine.[218] State and wocaw governmentaw edicts resuwted in schoowing in de Engwish wanguage which, fowwowing Brad y Lwyfrau Gweision (de Treachery of de Bwue Books), was seen as more academic and wordwhiwe for chiwdren, uh-hah-hah-hah.[219]

The University Cowwege of Wawes opened in Aberystwyf in 1872. Cardiff and Bangor fowwowed, and de dree cowweges came togeder in 1893 to form de University of Wawes.[214] The Wewsh Intermediate Education Act of 1889 created 95 secondary schoows. The Wewsh Department for de Board of Education fowwowed in 1907, which gave Wawes its first significant educationaw devowution, uh-hah-hah-hah.[214] A resurgence in Wewsh-wanguage schoows in de watter hawf of de 20f century at nursery and primary wevew saw attitudes shift towards teaching in de medium of Wewsh.[220] Wewsh is a compuwsory subject in aww of Wawes' state schoows for pupiws aged 5–16 years owd.[221] Whiwe dere has never been an excwusivewy Wewsh-wanguage cowwege, Wewsh-medium higher education is dewivered drough de individuaw universities and has since 2011 been supported by de Coweg Cymraeg Cenedwaedow (Wewsh Nationaw Cowwege) as a dewocawised federaw institution, uh-hah-hah-hah. In 2016–2017, dere were 1,547 maintained schoows in Wawes.[222] In 2016–2017, de country had 466,508 pupiws taught by 23,910 fuww-time eqwivawent teachers.[223][224]

Heawdcare

Pubwic heawdcare in Wawes is provided by NHS Wawes (GIG Cymru), which was originawwy formed as part of de NHS structure for Engwand and Wawes created by de Nationaw Heawf Service Act 1946, but wif powers over de NHS in Wawes coming under de Secretary of State for Wawes in 1969.[225] In turn, responsibiwity for NHS Wawes was passed to de Wewsh Assembwy and Executive under devowution in 1999. Historicawwy, Wawes was served by smawwer 'cottage' hospitaws, buiwt as vowuntary institutions.[226] As newer more expensive diagnostic techniqwes and treatments became avaiwabwe drough medicaw advancement, much of de cwinicaw work of de country has been concentrated in newer, warger district hospitaws.[226] In 2006, dere were seventeen district hospitaws in Wawes, awdough none situated in Powys.[226] NHS Wawes provides pubwic heawdcare in Wawes and empwoys some 90,000 staff, making it Wawes' biggest empwoyer.[227] The Minister for Heawf and Sociaw Services is de person widin de Wewsh Government who howds cabinet responsibiwities for bof heawf and sociaw care in Wawes.[228]

Demography

Popuwation history

The estimated (pre-1801) and census (post-1801) popuwation figures recorded for Wawes are:[231][232]

Year

Popuwation of Wawes

1536

278,000

1620

360,000

1770

500,000

1801

587,000

1851

1,163,000

1911

2,421,000

1921

2,656,000

1939

2,487,000

1961

2,644,000

1991

2,811,865

2011

3,063,000

The popuwation of Wawes doubwed from 587,000 in 1801 to 1,163,000 in 1851 and had reached 2,421,000 by 1911. Most of de increase came in de coaw mining districts, especiawwy Gwamorganshire, which grew from 71,000 in 1801 to 232,000 in 1851 and 1,122,000 in 1911.[233] Part of dis increase can be attributed to de demographic transition seen in most industriawising countries during de Industriaw Revowution, as deaf rates dropped and birf rates remained steady. However, dere was awso warge-scawe migration into Wawes during de Industriaw Revowution, uh-hah-hah-hah. The Engwish were de most numerous group, but dere were awso considerabwe numbers of Irish and smawwer numbers of oder ednic groups,[234][235] incwuding Itawians, who migrated to Souf Wawes.[236] Wawes awso received immigration from various parts of de British Commonweawf of Nations in de 20f century, and African-Caribbean and Asian communities add to de ednocuwturaw mix, particuwarwy in urban Wawes. Many of dese sewf-identify as Wewsh.[237]

Current

The 2011 census showed Wawes' popuwation to be 3,063,456, de highest in its history.[238] In 2011, 27% (837,000) of de totaw popuwation of Wawes were not born in Wawes,[239] incwuding 636,000 peopwe (21% of de totaw popuwation of Wawes) who were born in Engwand.[240] The main popuwation and industriaw areas are in souf Wawes, incwuding de cities of Cardiff, Swansea and Newport and de nearby vawweys, wif anoder significant popuwation in de norf-east around Wrexham and Fwintshire.

According to de 2001 census, 96% of de popuwation was White British, and 2.1% non-white (mainwy of British Asian origin).[241] Most non-white groups were concentrated in Cardiff, Newport and Swansea. Wewsh Asian and African communities devewoped mainwy drough immigration after de Second Worwd War.[242] In de earwy 21st century, parts of Wawes saw an increased number of immigrants settwe from recent EU accession countries such as Powand;[243] dough a 2007 study showed a rewativewy wow number of empwoyed immigrant workers from de former Eastern Bwoc countries in Wawes compared to oder regions of de United Kingdom.[244]

The 2001 UK census was criticised in Wawes for not offering 'Wewsh' as an option to describe respondents' nationaw identity.[245] Partwy to address dis concern, de 2011 census asked de qwestion "How wouwd you describe your nationaw identity?". Respondents were instructed to "tick aww dat appwy" from a wist of options dat incwuded Wewsh. The outcome was dat 57.5% of Wawes' popuwation indicated deir sowe nationaw identity to be Wewsh; a furder 7.1% indicated it to be bof Wewsh and British. No Wewsh nationaw identity was indicated by 34.1%. The proportion giving deir sowe nationaw identity as British was 16.9%, and anoder 9.4% incwuded British wif anoder nationaw identity. No British nationaw identity was indicated by 73.7%. 11.2% indicated deir sowe nationaw identity as Engwish and anoder 2.6% incwuded Engwish wif anoder nationaw identity.[246][247][248]

The 2011 census showed Wawes to be wess ednicawwy diverse dan any region of Engwand:[249] 93.2% cwassed demsewves as White British (incwuding Wewsh, Engwish, Scottish or Nordern Irish), 2.4% as "Oder White" (incwuding Irish), 2.2% as Asian (incwuding Asian British), 1% as Mixed, and 0.6% as Bwack (African, Caribbean, or Bwack British). The wowest proportion of White British (80.3%) was in Cardiff.[248][250]

In 2001, a qwarter of de Wewsh popuwation were born outside Wawes, mainwy in Engwand; about 3% were born outside de UK. The proportion born in Wawes varies across de country, wif de highest percentages in de souf Wawes vawweys and de wowest in mid Wawes and parts of de norf-east. In bof Bwaenau Gwent and Merdyr Tydfiw, 92% were Wewsh-born, compared to onwy 51% and 56% in de border counties of Fwintshire and Powys.[251] Just over 1.75 miwwion Americans report demsewves to have Wewsh ancestry, as did 440,965 Canadians in Canada's 2006 census.[252][253]

The totaw fertiwity rate (TFR) in Wawes was 1.90 in 2011,[254] which is bewow de repwacement rate of 2.1. The majority of birds are to unmarried women (58% of birds in 2011 were outside marriage).[255] About one in 10 birds (10.7%) in 2011 were to foreign-born moders, compared to 5.2% in 2001.[256]

A 2010 study estimated dat 35% of de Wewsh popuwation have surnames of Wewsh origin (5.4% of de Engwish and 1.6% of de Scottish popuwation awso bore 'Wewsh' names).[257] However, many modern surnames derived from owd Wewsh personaw names actuawwy arose in Engwand.[258]

The Wewsh Language Act 1993 and de Government of Wawes Act 1998 provide dat de Engwish and Wewsh wanguages be treated on a basis of eqwawity, and bof are used as working wanguages widin de Nationaw Assembwy.[262] Bof Engwish and Wewsh are considered officiaw wanguages of Wawes,[263] wif Wewsh furder recognised in waw as having "officiaw status".[264] Engwish is spoken by awmost aww peopwe in Wawes and is de main wanguage in most of de country. Code-switching is common in aww parts of Wawes and is known by various terms, dough none is recognised by professionaw winguists.[265] "Wengwish" is de Wewsh Engwish wanguage diawect. It has been infwuenced significantwy by Wewsh grammar and incwudes words derived from Wewsh. According to John Davies, Wengwish has "been de object of far greater prejudice dan anyding suffered by Wewsh".[266][267] Nordern and western Wawes retain many areas where Wewsh is spoken as a first wanguage by de majority of de popuwation, and Engwish wearnt as a second wanguage. The 2011 Census showed 562,016 peopwe, 19.0% of de Wewsh popuwation, were abwe to speak Wewsh, a decrease from de 20.8% returned in de 2001 census.[268][269] Awdough monogwotism in young chiwdren continues, wife-wong monogwotism in Wewsh is recognised to be a ding of de past.[270]

Road signs in Wawes are generawwy in bof Engwish and Wewsh; where pwace names differ in de two wanguages, bof versions are used (e.g. "Cardiff" and "Caerdydd"). Under new reguwations dat came into force in 2016, de Wewsh Language Commissioner reqwires wocaw audorities and Wewsh Government to ensure dat aww new or renewed road signs dat use bof wanguages to feature de Wewsh wanguage first.[271]

During de 20f century, a number of smaww communities of speakers of wanguages oder dan Wewsh or Engwish, such as Bengawi or Cantonese, estabwished demsewves in Wawes as a resuwt of immigration, uh-hah-hah-hah.

The patron saint of Wawes is Saint David (Dewi Sant), wif Saint David's Day (Dydd Gŵyw Dewi Sant) cewebrated annuawwy on 1 March.[275] In 1904, dere was a rewigious revivaw (known by some as de 1904–1905 Wewsh Revivaw, or simpwy The 1904 Revivaw) which started drough de evangewism of Evan Roberts and saw warge numbers of peopwe converting to non-Angwican Christianity, sometimes whowe communities.[276] Roberts' stywe of preaching became de bwueprint for new rewigious bodies such as Pentecostawism and de Apostowic Church.[277] The Apostowic Church howds its annuaw Apostowic Conference in Swansea each year, usuawwy in August.

There are awso communities of Hindus and Sikhs, mainwy in de souf Wawes cities of Newport, Cardiff and Swansea, whiwe de wargest concentration of Buddhists is in de western ruraw county of Ceredigion.[282]
Judaism was de first non-Christian faif to be estabwished in Wawes since Roman times, dough by 2001 de community has decwined to approximatewy 2,000.[283]

Literature in Wawes

Wawes can cwaim one of de owdest unbroken witerary traditions in Europe.[292] The witerary tradition of Wawes stretches back to de sixf century and incwudes Geoffrey of Monmouf and Gerawd of Wawes, regarded by historian John Davies as among de finest Latin audors of de Middwe Ages.[292] The earwiest body of Wewsh verse, by poets Tawiesin and Aneirin, survive not in deir originaw form, but in medievaw versions and have undergone significant winguistic changes.[292] Wewsh poetry and native wore and wearning survived de Dark Ages, drough de era of de Poets of de Princes (c. 1100 – 1280) and den de Poets of de Gentry (c. 1350 – 1650). The Poets of de Princes were professionaw poets who composed euwogies and ewegies to de Wewsh princes whiwe de Poets of de Gentry were a schoow of poets dat favoured de cywydd metre.[293] The period is notabwe for producing one of Wawes' greatest poets, Dafydd ap Gwiwym.[294] After de Angwicisation of de gentry de tradition decwined.[293]

Despite de extinction of de professionaw poet, de integration of de native ewite into a wider cuwturaw worwd did bring oder witerary benefits.[295] Renaissance schowars such as Wiwwiam Sawesbury and John Davies brought humanist ideaws from Engwish universities when dey returned to Wawes.[295] Whiwe in 1588 Wiwwiam Morgan became de first person to transwate de Bibwe into Wewsh, from Greek and Hebrew.[295] From de 16f century onwards de prowiferation of de 'free-metre' verse became de most important devewopment in Wewsh poetry, but from de middwe of de 17f century a host of imported accentuaw metres from Engwand became very popuwar.[295] By de 19f century de creation of a Wewsh epic, fuewwed by de eisteddfod, became an obsession wif Wewsh-wanguage writers.[296] The output of dis period was prowific in qwantity but uneqwaw in qwawity.[297] Initiawwy de eisteddfod was askance wif de rewigious denominations, but in time dese bodies came to dominate de competitions, wif de bardic demes becoming increasingwy scripturaw and didactic.[297] The period is notabwe for de adoption by Wewsh poets of bardic names, made popuwar by de eisteddfod movement.

Major devewopments in 19f-century Wewsh witerature incwude Lady Charwotte Guest's transwation of de Mabinogion, one of de most important medievaw Wewsh prose tawes of Cewtic mydowogy, into Engwish. 1885 saw de pubwication of Rhys Lewis by Daniew Owen, credited as de first novew written in de Wewsh wanguage. The 20f century experienced an important shift away from de stiwted and wong-winded Victorian Wewsh prose, wif Thomas Gwynn Jones weading de way wif his 1902 work Ymadawiad Ardur.[296] The swaughter in de trenches of de First Worwd War had a profound effect on Wewsh witerature wif a more pessimistic stywe of prose championed by T. H. Parry-Wiwwiams and R. Wiwwiams Parry.[296] The industriawisation of souf Wawes saw a furder shift wif de wikes of Rhydwen Wiwwiams who used de poetry and metre of a bygone ruraw Wawes but in de context of an industriaw wandscape. Though de inter-war period is dominated by Saunders Lewis, for his powiticaw and reactionary views as much as his pways, poetry and criticism.[296]

The careers of some 1930s writers continued after Worwd War Two, incwuding dose of Gwyn Thomas, Vernon Watkins, and Dywan Thomas, whose most famous work Under Miwk Wood was first broadcast in 1954. Thomas was one of de most notabwe and popuwar Wewsh writers of de 20f century and one of de most innovative poets of his time.[298]Gwyn Thomas became de voice of de Engwish-speaking Wewsh vawweys wif his humorous take on grim wives.

The attitude of de post-war generation of Wewsh writers in Engwish towards Wawes differs from de previous generation, in dat dey were more sympadetic to Wewsh nationawism and to de Wewsh wanguage. The change can be winked to de nationawist fervour generated by Saunders Lewis and de burning of de Bombing Schoow on de Lweyn Peninsuwa in 1936, awong wif a sense of crisis generated by Worwd War II.[299] In poetry R. S. Thomas (1913–2000) was de most important figure droughout de second hawf of de twentief century. Whiwe he "did not wearn de Wewsh wanguage untiw he was 30 and wrote aww his poems in Engwish",[300] he wanted de Wewsh wanguage to be made de first wanguage of Wawes, and de officiaw powicy of biwinguawism abowished.

The major novewist in de second hawf of de twentief century was Emyr Humphreys (born 1919), who during his wong writing career pubwished over twenty novews, which surveys de powiticaw and cuwturaw history of twentief-century Wawes.[301] Anoder novewist of de post-Second-Worwd-War era was Raymond Wiwwiams (1921–88). Born near Abergavenny, Wiwwiams continued de earwier tradition of writing from a weft-wing perspective on de Wewsh industriaw scene in his triwogy "Border Country" (1960), "Second Generation" (1964), and "The Fight for Manod" (1979). He awso enjoyed a reputation as a cuwturaw historian, uh-hah-hah-hah.

The best of de few Wewsh artists of de 16f–18f centuries tended to weave de country to work, many of dem moving to London or Itawy. Richard Wiwson (1714–82) is arguabwy de first major British wandscapist. Awdough more notabwe for his Itawian scenes, he painted severaw Wewsh scenes on visits from London, uh-hah-hah-hah. By de wate 18f century, de popuwarity of wandscape art grew and cwients were found in de warger Wewsh towns, awwowing more Wewsh artists to stay in deir homewand. Artists from outside Wawes were awso drawn to paint Wewsh scenery, at first because of de Cewtic Revivaw. Then in de earwy 19f century, de Napoweonic Wars preventing de Grand Tour to continentaw Europe, travew drough Wawes came to be considered more accessibwe.[307][308]

Nationaw symbows and andem

The Fwag of Wawes incorporates de red dragon (Y Ddraig Goch) of Prince Cadwawader awong wif de Tudor cowours of green and white.[315] It was used by Henry VII at de Battwe of Bosworf in 1485, after which it was carried in state to St Pauw's Cadedraw.[315] The red dragon was den incwuded in de Tudor royaw arms to signify deir Wewsh descent. It was officiawwy recognised as de Wewsh nationaw fwag in 1959.[316] On its creation de Union Jack incorporated de fwags of de kingdoms of Scotwand, of Irewand and de Cross of St. George which den represented de Kingdom of Engwand and Wawes.[317] The combined fwag for bof Engwand and Wawes arose from de Laws in Wawes Act of 1535 which annexed Wawes to Engwand.

The daffodiw and de week are bof symbows of Wawes. The origins of de week can be traced to de 16f century, whiwe de daffodiw became popuwar in de 19f century, encouraged by David Lwoyd George.[318] This is attributed to confusion (or association) between de Wewsh for week, cenhinen, and dat for daffodiw, cenhinen Bedr or St. Peter's week.[142] A report in 1916 gave preference to de week, which has appeared on British pound coins.[318]

The Prince of Wawes' herawdic badge is awso sometimes used to symbowise Wawes. The badge, known as de Prince of Wawes's feaders, consists of dree white feaders emerging from a gowd coronet. A ribbon bewow de coronet bears de German motto Ich dien (I serve). Severaw Wewsh representative teams, incwuding de Wewsh rugby union, and Wewsh regiments in de British Army (de Royaw Wewsh, for exampwe) use de badge or a stywised version of it. There have been attempts made to curtaiw de use of de embwem for commerciaw purposes and restrict its use to dose audorised by de Prince of Wawes.[320]

"Hen Wwad Fy Nhadau" (Engwish: Land of My Faders) is de Nationaw Andem of Wawes, and is pwayed at events such as footbaww or rugby matches invowving de Wawes nationaw team as weww as de opening of de Wewsh Assembwy and oder officiaw occasions.[321][322]"God Save de Queen", de nationaw andem of de United Kingdom, is sometimes pwayed awongside Hen Wwad fy Nhadau during officiaw events wif a royaw connection, uh-hah-hah-hah.[323]

Media

Aww Wewsh tewevision broadcasts are digitaw. The wast of de anawogue transmitters ceased broadcasts in Apriw 2010, and Wawes became de UK's first digitaw nation, uh-hah-hah-hah.[344] Cardiff is home to de tewevision output of Wawes. BBC Cymru Wawes is de nationaw broadcaster.[345] Based in Lwandaff, Cardiff, it produces Wewsh-oriented Engwish and Wewsh-wanguage tewevision for BBC One Wawes, BBC TWO Wawes and S4C channews.[346] BBC Cymru Wawes has awso produced programmes, such as Life on Mars, Doctor Who and Torchwood, shown worwdwide.[345][347]ITV de UK's main commerciaw broadcaster has a Wewsh-oriented service branded as ITV Wawes, whose studios are in Cuwverhouse Cross, Cardiff.[348] S4C, based in Lwanishen, Cardiff, first broadcast on 1 November 1982. Its output was mostwy Wewsh-wanguage at peak hours but shared Engwish-wanguage content wif Channew 4 at oder times. Since de digitaw switchover in Apriw 2010, de channew has broadcast excwusivewy in Wewsh. BBC Cymru Wawes provide S4C wif ten hours of programming per week. Their remaining output is commissioned from ITV and independent producers.[349]

Magazines pubwished in Wewsh and Engwish cover generaw and speciawist subjects. Cambria, a Wewsh affairs magazine pubwished bi-mondwy in Engwish, has subscribers in over 30 countries.[358] Titwes pubwished qwarterwy in Engwish incwude Pwanet and Poetry Wawes.[359][360] Wewsh-wanguage magazines incwude de current affairs titwes Gowwg (View) (pubwished weekwy) and Barn (Opinion) (mondwy).[352] Among de speciawist magazines, Y Wawr (The Dawn) is pubwished qwarterwy by Merched y Wawr, de nationaw organisation for women, uh-hah-hah-hah.[352]Y Traedodydd (The Essayist), a qwarterwy pubwication by The Presbyterian Church of Wawes, first appeared in 1845; de owdest Wewsh pubwication stiww in print.[352]

Cuisine

About 78% of de wand surface of Wawes is given over to agricuwturaw use.[361] However, very wittwe of dis is arabwe wand; de vast majority consists of permanent grass pasture or rough grazing for herd animaws such as sheep and cows. Awdough bof beef and dairy cattwe are raised widewy, especiawwy in Carmardenshire and Pembrokeshire, Wawes is more weww known for its sheep farming and dus wamb is de meat traditionawwy associated wif Wewsh cooking.

Performing arts

Music

Wawes is often referred to as "de wand of song",[364] and is notabwe for its harpists, mawe choirs, and sowo artists. The principaw Wewsh festivaw of music and poetry is de annuaw Nationaw Eisteddfod. The Lwangowwen Internationaw Eisteddfod echoes de Nationaw Eisteddfod but provides an opportunity for de singers and musicians of de worwd to perform. Traditionaw music and dance in Wawes is supported by a myriad of societies. The Wewsh Fowk Song Society has pubwished a number of cowwections of songs and tunes.[365]

Mawe voice choirs emerged in de 19f century and continue today. Originawwy dese choirs where formed as de tenor and bass sections of chapew choirs, and embraced de popuwar secuwar hymns of de day.[371] Many of de historic choirs survive in modern Wawes, singing a mixture of traditionaw and popuwar songs.[371]

Drama

The earwiest surviving Wewsh pways are two medievaw miracwe pways, Y Tri Brenin o Gwwen ("The dree Kings from Cowogne") and Y Dioddefaint a'r Atgyfodiad ("The Passion and de Resurrection").[373] A recognised Wewsh tradition of deatre emerged during de 18f century, in de form of an interwude, a metricaw pway performed at fairs and markets.[374] The warger Wewsh towns began buiwding deatres during de 19f century, and attracted de wikes of James Sheridan Knowwes and Wiwwiam Charwes Macready to Wawes. Awong wif de pwayhouses, dere existed mobiwe companies at visiting fairs, dough from 1912 most of dese travewwing deatres settwed, purchasing deatres to perform in, uh-hah-hah-hah.

Dance

Dancing is a popuwar pastime in Wawes; traditionaw dances incwude fowk dancing and cwog dancing. The first mention of dancing in Wawes is in a 12f-century account by Girawdus Cambrensis, but by de 19f century traditionaw dance had aww but died out; dis is attributed to de infwuence of Nonconformists and deir bewief dat any physicaw diversion was wordwess and satanic, especiawwy mixed dancing.[378] These ancient dances, orawwy passed down, were awmost singwe-handedwy rescued by Lois Bwake (1890–1974) who recorded dem in numerous instruction pamphwets, recording bof steps and music.[378] In a simiwar vein, cwog dancing was preserved and devewoped by de wikes of Howew Wood (1882–1967) who perpetuated de art at wocaw and nationaw stages.[379] Cwog dancing, traditionawwy a mawe dominated art, is now a common part of eisteddfodau.[379] In 2010, a 30-year traditionaw dance festivaw hewd in Caernarvon came to an end due to a wack of participants,[380] dough cwog dancing has seen a revivaw in de 21st century.[381]

The Wewsh Fowk Dance Society was founded in 1949;[379] it supports a network of nationaw amateur dance teams and pubwishes support materiaw. Contemporary dance grew out of Cardiff in de 1970s; one of de earwiest companies, Moving Being, came from London to Cardiff in 1973.[379] Diversions was formed in 1983, eventuawwy becoming de Nationaw Dance Company Wawes, now de resident company at de Wawes Miwwennium Centre.[382] Conversewy, Wawes does not have its own nationaw bawwet company.[378]

Festivaws

As weww as cewebrating many of de traditionaw rewigious festivaws of Great Britain, such as Easter and Christmas, Wawes has its own uniqwe cewebratory days. An earwy festivity was Mabsant when wocaw parishes wouwd cewebrate de patron saint of deir wocaw church.[383] This cewebration died out in de 19f century, to be repwaced by Saint David's Day, which is cewebrated on 1 March droughout Wawes, and by Wewsh expats around de worwd.

Commemorating de patron saint of friendship and wove, Dydd Santes Dwynwen's popuwarity has been increasing recentwy. It is cewebrated on 25 January in a simiwar way to St Vawentine's Day: by exchanging cards and by howding parties and concerts.[384]

See awso

Footnotes

^The earwiest instance of Lwoegyr occurs in de earwy 10f-century prophetic poem Armes Prydein. It seems comparativewy wate as a pwace name, de nominative pwuraw Lwoegrwys, "men of Lwoegr", being earwier and more common, uh-hah-hah-hah. The Engwish were sometimes referred to as an entity in earwy poetry (Saeson, as today) but just as often as Eingw (Angwes), Iwys (Wessex-men), etc. Lwoegr and Sacson became de norm water when Engwand emerged as a kingdom. As for its origins, some schowars have suggested dat it originawwy referred onwy to Mercia – at dat time a powerfuw kingdom and for centuries de main foe of de Wewsh. It was den appwied to de new kingdom of Engwand as a whowe (see for instance Rachew Bromwich (ed.), Trioedd Ynys Prydein, University of Wawes Press, 1987). "The wost wand" and oder fancifuw meanings, such as Geoffrey of Monmouf's monarch Locrinus, have no etymowogicaw basis. (See awso Discussion in Reference 40)

^A traditionaw story is dat de Engwish king who had just conqwered deir wands had promised de Wewsh to name a Prince of Wawes "who spoke no Engwish", onwy to fuwfiww dis promise by presenting his infant son, before de age he couwd speak at aww. But Edward II was not an infant when de titwe was granted; de story is apocryphaw and was first recorded in 1584. (Davies [1994] p. 175)

^Bogdanor, Vernon (1995). The Monarchy and de Constitution. London: Oxford University Press. p. 52. ISBN978-0-19-827769-9. Retrieved 5 November 2010. In his autobiography, de Duke of Windsor compwained dat, as Prince of Wawes, dere was 'no specific routine job in de sense, for exampwe, dat a vice-president has a job ... Though I was next in wine to de Throne, wif aww dat position impwied, I actuawwy possessed no formaw state duties or responsibiwities.' 'This constitutionaw vacuum', Jonadan Dimbweby, biographer of de Prince of Wawes, has noted, 'was not an oversight, but documentary evidence of de pecuwiar position dat de heir apparent occupies; dere is no formaw "rowe", except to wait.'